Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) is poised to announce his highly anticipated campaign for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
But even before embarking on his bid to become the GOP’s next standard-bearer, DeSantis has been targeted by declared and undeclared candidates alike who are trying to undermine the onetime favorite alternative to former President Donald Trump.
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There are two campaign strategies emerging at the start of this Republican presidential primary, according to GOP strategist John Feehery.
“Some want to become Trump’s vice president. Others want to become the Trump alternative,” Feehery told the Washington Examiner. “I don’t think tearing down DeSantis [is] a particularly smart strategy because he has been an effective governor and a good conservative. But people are gonna do what they are gonna do.”
DeSantis is positioning himself as a more electable, effective Trump, telling donors last week, “You have basically three people at this point that are credible in this whole thing.”
“[President Joe] Biden, Trump, and me,” the governor said during the phone call hosted by his super PAC Never Back Down. “I think of those three, two have a chance to get elected president — Biden and me.”
“We must reject the culture of losing that has impacted our party in recent years,” he told voters in Iowa the week before. “If we get distracted, if we focus the election on the past or on other side issues, then I think the Democrats are going to beat us again.”
Abortion has been the most striking policy difference between DeSantis and Trump so far during their shadow Republican primary, with the former president claiming “many people within the pro-life movement” contend the governor’s six-week prohibition is “too harsh.” The pair’s super PACs have also spent a combined $22.5 million on ads during the last two months attacking their respective records on entitlement reform, taxes, guns, the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and even how DeSantis reportedly eats chocolate pudding.
But after DeSantis described Russia‘s war in Ukraine as “a territorial dispute” and increasing criticism of his lawsuits against Disney amid broader concerns regarding his people skills, evidenced by several Florida lawmakers declining to endorse him, the governor’s support in the polls has dropped. DeSantis’s polling decrease also coincided with a Manhattan grand jury indicting Trump for hush money payments he made before the 2016 election. Since Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg decided to charge Trump, DeSantis’s average support has plummeted from 30% to 19%, according to RealClearPolitics. Simultaneously, Trump’s has improved from 46% to 56%.
The Trump campaign has repeatedly shared negative DeSantis news and statements with reporters, including stories about the governor’s problems securing endorsements.
“It’s no surprise that Ron DeSantis and his political cronies have continued to terrorize the Florida legislature with the threat of his veto pen if they don’t acquiesce to his demand to endorse his candidacy,” Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said. “There are some brave legislators who have stood up to DeSantis’ swamp-like behavior and resisted his intimidation tactics in order to do what is right for Florida and the country.”
“Those who he can’t control, including almost the entirety of the Florida federal congressional delegation, have endorsed President Trump because he’s the only candidate who can beat Joe Biden and take back the White House,” Cheung added.
DeSantis’s difficulties have provided opportunities for other Republicans in the primary, including those previously not considered or had earlier expressed disinterest, from Govs. Doug Burgum (R-ND) and Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) to Miami Mayor Francis Suarez. Former Vice President Mike Pence and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are also expected to announce their candidacies soon.
Former U.N. Ambassador and South Carolina GOP Gov. Nikki Haley, a declared candidate, is spearheading the effort against DeSantis among his potential opponents not named Trump, a preview of the debates, especially if Trump does not participate.
An internal memo by Haley campaign manager Betsy Ankney circulated among reporters this week criticized DeSantis’s argument that he is Trump “without the drama,” asserting he is “Trump without the charm.”
“In the next month, the GOP presidential field will largely be set,” Ankney wrote. “While Trump maintains a grip on roughly 30% of the primary electorate, there is an appetite for a credible alternative who will move beyond the drama and give our party a real chance of beating Joe Biden ([Vice President] Kamala Harris).”
“Nikki Haley knows Americans are tired of all the drama of the past,” she said. “Voters deserve a choice, not an echo.”
Meanwhile, DeSantis super PAC spokeswoman Erin Perrine remains adamant the primary is already “a two-man race” and the governor “isn’t even a candidate.”
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“As we saw at his recent visits to Iowa and New Hampshire, there is growing momentum behind the governor because he is the only Republican who doesn’t just talk the talk, he follows through on the hard fights like taking on woke corporations,” Perrine said. “The choice couldn’t be clearer for primary voters — while Donald Trump may talk a big game, DeSantis actually fights and wins.”
“Not only do voters know DeSantis will beat Joe Biden, but they know, while Trump backs down from battles, DeSantis will always fight for our values, country, children, families, and future,” she went on.
